The 5 at 5 you need to read

Minnesota voter turnout was 50 percent, lower than expected

Minnesota may not have lived up to its reputation for high voter turnout this Election Day. Early numbers show just a little over half of the state’s eligible voters showed up to polling stations – a lot lower than the 55 to 60 percent the Secretary of State's Office projected. Turnout for midterm elections is usually low, but around 56 percent of the state’s voters went to the polls four years ago.

ND Teacher of the Year pleads not guilty to having sexual relationship with student

A North Dakota Teacher of the Year has pleaded not guilty to charges that say he had a sexual relationship with a student. The 35-year-old West Fargo educator is charged with felony corruption and solicitation of a minor. The alleged incidents took place five years ago when the girl was 17 years old. The defense lawyer says his client passed a lie detector test. He won the state teaching award last Fall.

Disqualified high school athletes in the running for sportsmanship award

The two high school girls who were disqualified for helping another runner at a state cross-country meet in Northfield last week will be considered for a national sportsmanship award, the Minnesota State High School League says. Cross-country rules say runners cannot aid another competitor, so they were disqualified, but the league says that doesn’t “diminish from their tremendous act of sportsmanship.”

What’s in a name? Captain Jack Sparrow snags 23 percent of vote

No election day gold for a fictional pirate in Hennepin County. Captain Jack Sparrow was on the ballot for the county commissioner’s seat in Hennepin’s 4th District. He lost to incumbent Peter McLaughlin – but took 22.77 percent of the vote before waving the white flag. Sparrow is in fact a real person whose legal name is that of the famous pirate – he’s a local political activist.

Wild’s Zach Parise to miss entire road trip with injury

The Minnesota Wild will be without its leading scorer for an upcoming road trip that takes them to Ottawa, Montreal and New Jersey. Team captain Zach Parise suffered an upper-body injury in last night’s loss to the Penguins. Details of his injury are unknown, but coach Mike Yeo said Parise is getting checked out by doctors today. The top line at practice today featured Thomas Vanek, Mikael Granlund and Jason Pominville.